This invention relates to a hydroentangled nonwoven fabric having comparable strength in the machine direction and in the cross direction and having high absorbency characteristics as well as drape and hand making it suitable for use in hospital gowns and the like.
Prior fabrics possessing characteristics of absorbency, drape and hand suitable for hospital use often exhibit a considerable disparity in tensile strengths as between the machine direction and the cross direction. This disparity causes difficulties in attaching sleeves to the body portion of a gown made of the same fabric by means of standard sewing operations often requiring an additional step. Since considerable tensile strength is required in the cross direction it has heretofore been necessary to construct relatively heavy nonwoven fabrics in order to produce desirable strength characteristics. Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a lighter fabric which presents sufficient tensile strength in both the machine direction and the cross direction while at the same time providing suitable characteristics for use in hospitals and the like such as in hospital gowns,
The prior art includes the provision of nonwoven fabrics having balanced strength properties in both the machine and cross directions which have been hydroentangled with essentially balanced high fire retardancy in both directions such as illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 5,252,386. Balanced tension is achieved through the steps of stretching the web in a cross machine direction while wet with the fire retardant bath and drying the web under tension in the cross direction. Another example of a nonwoven fabric construction having comparable strength in the machine direction and in the cross direction is illustrated at U.S. Pat. No. 5,286,289 wherein spot bonds are distributed in a cornrow pattern.
Accordingly, an important object of the invention is the provision of a relatively light fabric having improved tensile strength characteristics in both the machine direction and in the cross direction when compared to nonwoven fabrics presently utilized for hospital purposes such as gowns.
Another important object of the invention is the provision of nonwoven fabrics manufactured by a hydroentanglement process which utilizes web-forming techniques which result in comparable tensile strengths in both the machine direction and in the cross direction.
Another important object of the invention is the provision of a composite nonwoven fabric by a hydroentanglement process wherein wood fibers are incorporated into a web having increased tensile strength in both the machine direction and the cross direction to provide absorbency, drape and hand which makes the fabric suitable for hospital use and for fabrication into hospital gowns and the like.